Riches to Rags
by TheVoyeur
Summary: After a revelation from an unexpected source, Blue blood sets out to fix all his mistakes. Not just from the Gala, but from everything in his life.


Riches to Rags: A Better me

Chapter 1: Any Choice

Prince Blueblood dragged himself to his room for the evening. In all his time, he had never had to face such degradation in public. And was all because some unicorn mare had to get upset for no reason he could see. He really didn't understand why she had acted the way she did. That is the way he had always acted, it couldn't possibly be his fault. But in any case, the night had truly been ruined. It was definitely not what he or most of the guests that night thought it was going to be.

The thoughts of the night alone made him sigh as he finally got to his room. Wasting no time in wanting to forget about the evenings events, he pushed the door of his room in and walked inside. HE turned the lights on, and slowly made his way over to his dresser. He opened one of the drawers and took out a towel, then made his way over to the bathroom.

He turned the sink on, not even bothering to look at his reflection in the mirror, already knowing that he was not looking his best. He put his hooves under the water, and splashed it against his face, letting out a say of mild relief from the cold feeling. Putting the towel to his face, he wiped away the residue of cake that was left. He stayed like that for a while, mulling over everything that had happened that night. Things had certainly gone wrong, but what was on his mind most of all... was what that unicorn mare said to him.

He had never been told those things before. It shouldn't have bothered him, but for some reason it really did. Getting annoyed from the fact that his mind was not giving him a chance to relax, he pulled the towel away from his face. And it was the first time that night that he realized how bad he actually looked.

Staring back at him in the mirror was not the usual reflection he saw. His eyes seemed sad, and his features just spoke of that of a troubled pony. But why? Why did he look like that? He shouldn't feel that way. He didn't feel that way on the inside. Yet the mirror was telling him that he looked like a wreck. Could it have something to do with what happened? How could it be? It wasn't his fault.

But at the same time, the thoughts of what that mare said to him was still ringing in his head. _Could what she have said be true? _he thought to himself. Where as there was a large part of him that told him no and to stop thinking about it, there was still a small voice that kept telling him yes. It was so conflicting, and it was causing him to think so much about what he did. Had he really been that bad? He wasn't behaving any differently then any of the other stallion's there.

This confused him even more. Why would that mare want to spend time with him if she thought he wasn't going to act like that? All the thoughts swirling in his mind were starting to give him a headache. He placed a hoof on his head, and squeezed his eyes shut. He turned his head to the right slightly, and when he opened his eyes, it fell upon a sight that he hadn't seen in some time. Just outside of his bathroom, there was an old picture resting on his dresser.

He walked over to inspect it, and was hit with the feeling of nostalgia. It was a photo of his father and him when he was just a colt. His father was one of the royal Pegasus guards, and shared the same coat of fur that he had. He smiled slightly at the memory of his father, when he was still alive. Having been brought down by some of the creatures of the Everfree forest. Even though it was a sad memory, the happier ones outweighed it.

He then noticed something about the picture that he hadn't before in the picture. There was a slight fold in the corner... and it had writing on it. Using his magic to remove the back of the frame, and then pulled the picture out. What was on the back was a letter... to him.

"My son, I know you are very young now, but must write this. In case I forget it later on. I've watched and looked after you since the day you were born, and I am truly proud to have you as my son. But there is something you need to know. Your mother, although I do love her with all my heart, is not the greatest of roll models for you. She comes from a very high class family, and I found out very quickly when I met her that she and her parents lived a life style of much comfort. To me, that doesn't seem like what a foal should be raised with. It teaches you nothing about life, and about all of the things you should be thankful to have. That is why, very soon, I'm going to start taking you with me to see what it's like to do work with people who know what it means to work for what they have. I know it seems odd, but I want you to become something better. Better than what the high class thinks they need to be, and of course better than me. There comes a time in life when a colt needs to start learning how things work in the real world. If you stay in the pampered world all your life, I don't even want to think about what you'll become. I know this sounds out of place for a father to say to his a such a young age, but I think it's for the best. I think it's better to learn it at this age, that way when you're older you will appreciate what you do have in life. Know that I only do this because I care about you. You mean the world to me, and I want you to succeed. I love you very much, Ryan. And I know that you learn well from this."

Prince Blueblood stood there dumbfounded, unable to fully grasp just what he had read. His own father didn't approve of the lifestyle that his mother had raised him with. His father was planning to raise him differently, and died before he could get the chance to actually try. All the things his father had wrote, just added to the confusion that he already had. And it made him seriously think about his own thoughts from beforehand. He always remembered his father as strong and amazing stallion. His father was his hero... and he didn't approve of the way he was living.

He dropped the letter on the floor, and just starred blankly at the wall. So many thoughts were racing through his head. He slowly glanced around his room, taking in all that he had around him. He realized now that he had so many luxurious, and didn't realize it until now. He had never known anything aside from his royal life style. He never stopped to think for a second how others must live. He never thought of how it must be to not have all that he did.

It was now that everything was starting to make sense to him. What that unicorn had said to him, how he treated her and other people all his life. It all just seemed so wrong now. He never once considered what other go through, or what they think. He never thought about how others must live their lives without so much wealth. He had taken it all for granted, and was only just realizing it now. He lowered his head, and stared at the picture on the floor. He looked at the picture of himself and his father, both of them looked so happy. But inside, he knew that he had let him down. He felt like he had failed his fathers last request. And he felt completely horrible for the way treated all those pones now. Especially her.

He didn't know what to do. What was he supposed to do now? How on earth was he going to redeem himself for all of the wrong he had done. There was so much that he had to make up for. But how was he going to do it?

Then it dawned on him. He knew exactly what to do.

He picked his head up, and new look on his face. That of determination. He picked the photo up, and narrowed his eyes at his father. "I won't let you down father. I promise that I will make up for this inexcusable behavior." he vowed to the picture. He put the picture down, and then headed back to his bathroom. He opened up one of the drawers on the sink, and pulled out a pair of clippers. He turned the device on, took a deep breath... and proceeded to shave his mane down. He didn't cut it all away, but he cut it so it was very short. When he was done, he looked at himself in the mirror.

He was not the same person any more. And that is exactly what he wanted. He put the clippers back in the drawer. And then proceeded to head straight to his bed. He took a long look at his bead, and finally rested for the night. For what he had planned, he was going to have to get up very early in the morning. Not something that he was used to, but he had to do it for all he had at stake.

* * *

><p>Blueblood woke from his less than easy sleep at around 4:45am. He still had that determined look on his face, albeit sleepy. He groggily walked over to his closet, and started searching for the item that he would need. He finally found it after about ten minutes of searching. It was his fathers old backpack, very worn out and dirty, but in good shape none the less. After getting the pack, he then went to his dresser and pulled out several of his highly informal outfits and stuffed them into his pack.<p>

Once that was done, he went to the door and opened it very slowly. He didn't want any of the servants to know he was up. He poked his head out the door, making sure no one was there. It was clear, so he made his way out, making triple sure to be absolutely quiet. He slowly but surely crept his way to kitchen. Once inside, he made his way to the pantry. He looked around a few seconds, then just decided it didn't really matter. He just took a few random cans from the shelves, and stuffed them into his pack.

Once he was done, he quietly crept out of the kitchen. He was about to go through with his plan, but then realized something. He could leave the way he was. He need to look the part if he was going to go through with his plan. It was then that he heard the sound of hoof steps. He let out a sharp but soft gasp as he hugged the wall.

Just as he did that one of the servants came out of his room, yawning slightly. Thankfully, he went in the opposite direction as the prince. Once the pony was out of sight, the prince than started to walk down the hallway again. But he stopped just as he reached the servants room, noticing that the door was still slightly open. His own curiosity got the better of him, and he poked his head inside. Noticing no one else was in there. He went in.

The room was pretty basic, but still fairly nice. He turned his head around the room, taking in what the servant had to live with. Knowing that this was just the start. That's when he noticed the still open wardrobe. He walked over to it, and looked at all the hanging shirts and coats. All miss matched with formal and informal wear. That's when he noticed it.

Hanging by itself in the back, was a very beat up old blue jacket. Not formal by any standard, displaying the big logo "Earth Bound" in faded red letters on the front, cut in half by the zipper. He took the jacket of the hanger, but hesitated. He didn't feel right about taking what wasn't his, but he needed it. He sighed, and took his backpack off to put the jacket on. After he got the coat and back on, he started to make his way to the door. But then realized he couldn't yet.

He took someone's clothes, it wouldn't be right of him to leave without explaining to them what was going on. He looked around for something to tell the stallion about what happened, then spotted the quill and paper on the desk nearby. Perfect. He used his magic to pick up the the quill, and wrote his last words to the kingdom.

"Hello there, who ever you are. I'm sorry that I have to write to you under these conditions, but this must be done. I had to take one of you jackets out of your room, I'm sorry but I needed it. It's the only possible way that I'll be able to go through with what I have planned. When you find this, I ask that you tell my aunts that I am gone, and that I am safe. But please do not try and find me. I am on a mission that my father laid out for me, and I'm not going to stop until I feel that I have completed it. I will return, one day. But not until I feel that I have deserved it. I don't know who you are, but thank you. Good bye everyone, signed the stallion who once called himself Prince Blueblood."

After he signed the paper, he set out for the door once more. He was going to have to take the back route out of the castle to avoid the guards, but it was necessary. For once he left that castle, he would no longer be Prince Blueblood. He would be someone else. He would be a new person. He would be... Ryan.

* * *

><p><strong>Yep, he's out to find out what it's like to be less fortunate. I think that this character can be redeemed. But that's just me.<strong>


End file.
